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| Monday, 01 November 2004 |
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Politics | |
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| Former MP M.M. Zuhair, PC states... President Counsel and former Member of Parliament M.M. Zuhair, PC states that "Some weekend media reports have sought to unfairly attack those who hold the view that the term of office of the incumbent President would expire on 10 November 2006. The question of the date on which the incumbent President's term of office will terminate is a moot point. There is no room for debate if one reads Article 31 (3A)(d) of the Constitution. The provisions contained therein are clear. Article 31 (3A)(d)(i) and (ii) provide for three situations. In the first and second situations, if the person declared elected as President is the president in office (as in this case), then, the date of the commencement of the six-year term of office will depend on two further factors. In the first, the six-year term of office will commence in the same year in which the Presidential Elections are held, if the corresponding date (or the anniversary) on which the President's first term of office commences fall on a date after the date of the Presidential Elections. It will be clear that this situation has no application because the President's first term of office commenced on 10th November 1994, the corresponding anniversary being prior to the date of the December 1999 Presidential Elections. In the second situation, namely when the first situation has no application, the six-year term of office commences in the succeeding year following the year in which the election was held, and that too on the corresponding date or anniversary on which the first term commenced. The Presidential Election was held in the year 1999. The succeeding year is the year 2000. The corresponding date is the 10th of November 2000. The six-year term of office of the President began only on the 10th of November 2000 and will terminate on the 10th of November 2006. This is the constitutionally applicable provision however unpalatable it may be to those in the Opposition. The third situation which has no application to the facts of the present situation is that the six-year term of office will commence on the date on which the result of the Presidential Election is declared, if the person elected is not the President in office. The Constitution has clearly laid down the applicable law in the different scenarios. It has left no doubt that the six-year term of office of the present President will not expire until the 10th of November 2006. In the light of the above constitutional provisions, the dates of taking oaths or subscribing to the affirmation, though a constitutional requirement upon assuming office do not determine the constitutionally mandated dates of assumption or expiry of the period of office. Even in a situation where a person elected as President, is one who is not the incumbent President and new elected President fails to assume office, the President in office shall continue to exercise, perform and discharge the powers of the President-Article 31 (4)(b) proviso. There is no requirement for the incumbent President to take even a fresh oath, though one may do so by an abundance of caution." |
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